Tana the Winged Princess
by IgnisKnight
Summary: The kingdom of Askr is a realm where various heroes meet and share stories. What's in store for our local shy and awkward summoner when he meets a character of contrasting personality, a character as whom such was Frelia's own princess. A series featuring KiranxTana.
1. It's Tana!

**Hey guys, this is a new project that I'm working on for when I feel lazy about updating my other stories, so enjoy this series of short stories regarding our timid and awkward summoner and the bright and cheery princess Tana (I love her so much.)**

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 **Summoning Grounds**

A bead of sweat rolled down Kiran's face as the legendary weapon Breidablik shook in his hand, the teal haired twins stood behind him apprehensively as they waited to see who would come out next.

The trio had been at it for a few hours since the new banner had released, Eirika and Ephriam practically begged the poor timid summoner to try and summon Tana, though they supposed that Innes would be a nice inclusion. Being the friendly tactician that he was, he obliged... Unfortunately, since then, the order's orb supply had been running low and Anna had already reprimanded him harshly for the use of so many orbs, Kiran shuddered at the memory.

They had somehow been able to recruit Amelia through a full wheel of green orbs (much to their dismay) though they had happily welcomed the armored blonde into the order of heroes.

Ephraim and Eirika's expressions have started to lose hope. As nice as they were, they really didn't want to see any more Oboros or Florinas and Naga know that they already had their fill of Odin's theatrics but Kiran wasn't about to lose hope now, Eirika and Ephraim had been loyal and supportive friends since their appearance and they have been his strongest and most trustworthy comrades, he didn't want to let them down after all they had done for him.

Sweeping his hair to the side, Kiran looked to the side to find only five more orbs. Without hesitation, Kiran loaded them into the Breideblik one by one, Ephraim stepped up to place a hand on his shoulder before shaking his head. "That's enough, Kiran. You shouldn't waste any more orbs on our behalf and selfish desires, we can just wait until another banner shows up." He tried to convince him to stop, Eirika soon joined in as well as she expressed her concerns but Kiran wasn't having any of it. Despite his timid and awkward exterior, he knew how to be bold and stubborn when the situation called for it.

He shook his head before turning back to the summoning circle. "No Ephraim, I'm doing this because you guys are my friends, I know that it wouldn't be right if I can't make do on any of my promises." He stated firmly causing the blue-haired lord to step back in minor shock before his expression was replaced with a grin. "Well, I guess there's no stopping you now is there, my friend." The white cloaked summoner shook his head amused, Eirika beside him giggled. "You know how stubborn he can be, brother. He is one of the best tacticians that we have ever seen before!" Kiran blushed at the compliment before turning away, his cheeks burning red.

"H-hey!" He stammered, causing the twins to laugh, the cloaked summoner soon joining in.

After their laughter died down Kiran took a deep breath before aiming the legendary weapon in the center of the summoning circle. "... Here goes..." He whispered to himself. Eirika and Ephraim watched as a brilliant light blasted from the Breidablik's intricately designed barrel as it struck the chiseled stone revealing a pentagonal structure. It was always an amazing sight, seeing the dull and lifeless grey stone illuminate with an array of brilliant colors.

The orbs appeared one at a time.

The first emanated a crimson red with a four-star constellation within its image, similar to that of a diamond.

The second was a light colorless, with the image of a six-star constellation resembling a hectagon.

The third was a vibrant forest green with the image of a pentagonal five-star constellation.

The fourth was yet another crimson red, the three could only watch as the final circle in the summoning wheel illuminated.

A sea blue orb with a four-star constellation came into view.

The trio's eyes grew wide in excitement. This was it, this was their last chance before they had to scrounge up more quests for orbs, Eirika squealed as she clung onto Kiran's and Ephraim's arms tightly as the two chuckled.

They stared at the blue orb for what could only be described as minutes as they were entranced by the orb's beauty. Kiran stepped forward before aiming the Breidablik and firing a light at its core.

It shattered.

Before a rift in space opened up forming a light as a figure materialized where the orb used to float.

A bright flash had caused Kiran to stumble back, the Renais twins had caught him from falling in time but he had recognized what that power represented.

It meant that this unit had been ranked as a five star.

The three could only watch in amazement as a familiar shade of blue entered their vision, cerulean blue eyes that expressed a mixture of confusion and surprise. A young lady with olive skin stood beside a dazzling white pegasus, holding an elegantly crafted spear.

"W-what? Where..." Her gaze turned to find the three looking at the girl with the same shocked expression. "Eirika, Ephraim, is that you?" The twins looked at each other before a grin spread to both of their faces. They leaped onto the blue haired girl, effectively tackling her while knocking her to the ground as they both exclaimed "Tana!"

The three burst into a fit of laughter as they were reunited. Kiran couldn't help but smile at the sight, he had taken notice of his closest friends' sadness upon learning that there weren't many familiar faces among the order but luckily, new additions to the roster have arrived in fair quantities.

But of course, he still had a job to do.

Walking up to the trio he cleared his throat. Eirika and Ephraim's eyes widened in surprise before they opened up the way for Kiran to step in front of her and they rose to stand beside them. Tana who was still on the floor had an expression of confusion until he saw the cloaked summoner and her gaze was filled with curiosity.

Smiling, Kiran offered a hand out to her as she gratefully and gracefully accepted. Pulling her up, Tana dusted herself off before noticing Eirika and Ephraim's chuckling as the three in front of her seemed to be discussing something as their voices were hushed. The hooded figure seemed to look hesitant and awkward but still had a smile on his face as they finally nodded to each other before their eyes turned back to her. Nodding to himself, Tana could swear that she could hear the figure whisper words of encouragement to himself as Kiran and Tana stood face to face before taking in a deep breath and put his hand in front of her.

"Welcome to the Order of Heroes, Tana."

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 **Thanks for reading the first chapter of many in "Tana the Winged Princess"**

 **I really enjoyed writing this and I can only imagine what the future has in store for these drabbles. (also just a note for anyone who is curious, no this doesn't have a regular schedule, I'll just update it whenever I come up with something, though I suppose writing something short is quite relieving and easy as opposed to my other story which is still quite fun to write.)**

 **The chapters in this series probably won't be long and will just be some random stories of their adventures in the world of heroes but I hope you guys liked it. And I suppose that this pairing officially the first to grace Fanfiction dot Net.**

 **I also happened to get the new summer Tana after I had spent my last 100 orbs and somehow got a perfect IV Tana.**

 **If you are also hoping to summon on the banner, may Naga and I wish you great luck in your endeavors summoners!**

 **Ignis**


	2. A late night encounter

**Askr**

Kiran trudged down the ornate hallway with a stack of papers and scrolls in his possession. Unfortunately said stack was high enough to block his field of vision so he was walking blind, though he appeared to be mulling over some strategies that he had went over with the Robins and Soren.

The halls were quiet as it was late at night, the order had just come back from a successful mission in stopping Embla's forces from invading Askr so all the heroes went to celebrate their victory and party like animals, courtesy of Sharena, the girl had loved to be acquainted with as many heroes as she could so she took every and any opportunity to socialize and befriend the heroes. Alfonse wasn't as much so for parties, sure he liked to celebrate sometimes but he usually preferred to hone and train his skills with the sword and people like Chrom and Alm had liked to join him on occasion making Kiran happy that the Askrian prince was making friends with his fellow lords. Kiran, however, was practically the epitome of being shy and anti-social. He was often found working on his strategies alone in the Askrian library or with his fellow strategists, he was glad to have friends that understood him but he was often found with his own group of friends which usually consisted of Eirika, Ephraim... and Tana.

Though they had often joined in Eirika and Ephraim's conversations as of their close friendship, Kiran and Tana have rarely actually spoken to one another one on one, though Kiran believed that he was at fault due to being the shy tactician that he was as well as the fact that he had constantly shoved his face into whatever parchments he could get his hands on.

Kiran sighed before coming to a stop as he turned his head to the side to watch the stars glitter in the dark of the night. He had always enjoyed the late of the day, during the night Kiran would be more composed and at peace as the halls were rather silent, giving himself time to reflect on the day. He wasn't much of a morning person as he would often find himself waking up from Lucina and Chrom's tendencies to break pottery, not that he had ever blamed them, he himself had started training with a sword as he had insisted that he should be able to defend himself when necessary, he wasn't much better off when it came to breaking things when he wasn't focused...

Perhaps his accidental tendencies for the destruction of household objects could be implemented into a new strategy?

He chuckled at the thought silently before continuing to travel back to his office.

Kiran came across the mess hall's large doors which loomed over him, behind the doors, he could hear boisterous laughter and drunken bickering as well as tables being broken in the process. Kiran sighed as he deduced that it was likely the result of a drunk Hector rampaging around, though when the blue giant wasn't drunk, Hector would often be nice company for the shy summoner despite his expressive and loud nature, as long as Kiran made sure not to make any sort lines which would rouse the idea of a competition the two be able to have a pleasant conversation.

He loved taking on the role of a summoner as he had been able to make many new friends despite his shy tendencies but it had always given him a warm and happy feeling in his chest when someone welcomed him into their conversation. Despite the weight that had been put on his shoulders immediately after he had been summoned to this world, he had "taken it quite well" as Anna would quote.

His stare lingered on the wooden door with a hint of longing, as much as he wanted to join them and spend the time to just relax and just talk with the heroes, he had a job to do and that meant that he shouldn't be slacking off or else it could mean heavy casualties.

Kiran shuddered as he remembered the first time one of his units had died, it was something that he wanted to forget but he knew that it was necessary as summoner and tactician to experience these things so that his resolve and determination would be bolstered so he wouldn't be as shaken the next time.

But his first casualty was Eirika.

She was the first five-star unit that he had been able to recruit as well as his very first summon, Ephraim had joined soon after. The squadron which had included Eirika, Ephraim, Robin and Hector had to fend off the forces of Embla from a border invasion. Things had gone well at the start, they had been carefully diminishing and disarming Embla's offending forces through dividing and conquering tactics but Kiran had miscalculated an order of his as he had just realized that he had sent Eirika into a death trap of fliers and archers who were hiding to ambush any unaware soldiers. Being the compassionate and trusting friend she was, the teal haired princess had followed his orders without hesitation but he had only noticed them too late as he heard Eirika's cry of pain.

He had immediately dispatched all his units to follow him towards Eirika's location, only to find her lying on the ground with a multitude of arrows protruding from her abdomen and a flurry of lance strikes were evident from the significant amount of gashes that adorned on her flawless pale skin.

As much as Eirika and Ephraim had tried to convince him that it wasn't his fault, he couldn't forget that bittersweet smile that she had on her face as he held onto her in her last moments, the vacant look in her faded blue eyes and the soft touch of her palm wrapped on his cheek being stripped away as she fell to the ground dead. He had received later that night an outburst and a beating from his good friend Ephraim, he understood the emptiness he felt when someone close to him died. It was painful and he was responsible for it, Kiran felt a part of him die as he took every one of Ephraim's grief stricken blows. The blue haired lord apologized with shame once he had recovered enough to accept visitors, Eirika had also been revived in that time and had scolded her brother for what he did to the summoner and he was truly sorry for it. But Kiran knew that it was his fault that one of his closest friends had died under his command, he knew that he needed to get stronger and smarter, he had to be the best there ever was.

And that meant taking no unnecessary breaks.

Turning back to face the near pitch black corridor the tactician in training sighed before making his way down the pathway, the moonlight being his only source of illumination other than the occasional torches. He would probably need to add that to the list when he got back.

Though as he was deep in thought of thinking up improvements for the hall, the summoner failed to notice the hurried footsteps that were headed in his direction.

That was until he collided against something.

"Gah!" He exclaimed as off of his papers and parchments flew into the air above him, as he landed on the ground with a heavy thud he felt another weight crash onto his fallen form making him groan in pain. A high pitched shriek was also heard upon colliding with the white cloaked figure as he looked up at the dark ceiling with a dazed look before he shook it off to identify what it was that tackled him.

As his viewpoint declined downwards, he spotted a familiar shade of blue, then he came across a familiar princess' dazed figure as she lay on top of him. His cheeks turned a crimson red, "By the Gods, T-tana?!"

Tana groaned quietly on top of him as she rubbed her head with confusion until she found herself inches away from the summoner's face, she stared at his bright golden eyes for a moment before her cheeks matched the same shade as Kiran's. She quickly got off him before apologizing profusely, "Ah, I'm so sorry Summoner! I couldn't see where you were and, um." Kiran had huddled onto a nearby pillar as to hide his evident blush "S-sorry T-t-tana... I... I c-couldn't see w-where I was g-going e-either." He knelt forward to collect his fallen and scrambled parchments, Tana opted to help out as well but he politely refused. "W-why were y-you in such a h-hurry anyways?" He asked with genuine curiosity but his stammering got the better of him this time. The olive-skinned princes rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "Well, Eirika and Ephraim asked me if I could bring you to the mess hall since you've been working non-stop, so they suggested that I go to your office but you weren't there, so I ran around the castle until I bumped into you..." She explained, pointing her fingers together, embarrassed at her clumsiness. He nodded in understanding, "I-it's okay, we're both f-fine..." She tilted her head at him curiously, "Are you sure, you seem to be stammering quite a bit?" He nodded in confirmation as his cheeks flared to a deeper shade, "Y-yes, sorry, um..." She nodded with a comforting smile on her face. "It's okay, I understand." She had asked the Renais twins about the summoner's shy behavior and had explained to her that he had a rather tough time growing up in _his world_ so he didn't have the best experiences of interacting with people, though she never seemed to understand how someone so timid and awkward could lead and command an entire army with near perfect strategies.

Once Kiran collected all of his documents and texts, he stood up causing his hood to fall backward onto his upper back as Tana got a good look at what was under the hood of the summoner's cloak.

And she was stunned to see a handsome young man, around her age with pale white skin and messy brown hair which reminded her of the other tactician, Robin was it? A band was attached to a lock of brown hair that fell down at shoulder length, it was a good look on him. She stared into his enchanting golden eyes with wonder as his cheeks suddenly turned red in embarrassment as he attempted to put back on his hood but failed since he had his hands full with his papers. Tana giggled in amusement and pity before she helped him put on the large hood over his head, sighing in relief, he expressed his thanks, his cheeks still red. "T-thank you..." She returned an embarrassed but genuine smile and nod. Nodding back, he turned to leave, though not in the direction of the mess hall, it was the library.

"Where are you going?" She asked, obviously confused as she was meant to have him follow her to the mess hall where all the other heroes were.

He turned halfway towards her with a neutral expression adorning his pale face, "I'm going to the library, I need to brainstorm more plans..." She looked at him with disbelief, was this guy tireless? The man had already worked without a break and had even skipped dinner to plan, though she saw the slight bags underneath his golden eyes... this was becoming a problem. She thought about retorting but had seen the look in his eyes, evidently knowing what she wanted to say but there was a hint of stubbornness that told her that he wouldn't budge. She sighed before turning her head back towards the mess hall doors, "Wait right here." She stated, Kiran was about to object but she ran off into the direction of the mess hall. He supposed that waiting a couple of minutes couldn't hurt as he placed parchments onto the blue carpeted floor.

Tana came back soon after with two plates with food in her hands. Kiran looked at her with surprise as he tilted his head curiously, she giggled. "You need to eat, silly. Don't think that everybody had noticed that you often skip out on your meals?" She teased, the young man stiffened and was about to retort before Tana stepped beside him. "Well then? Let's go!" Kiran only became more confused, "Go where?"

"To the library of course!"

Did she want to go with him? Huh, well that was unexpected... "HUH?!" he exclaimed making the princess laugh, "Eirika and Ephraim have told me about that stubborn wit of yours so it's my duty as one of your soldiers to help keep you in good health, summoner. We can't have our commander fall from food deprivation, now can we?" He sighed while shaking his head, though he supposed that she had a point, he wouldn't be much help to the order if he was starving to death... besides the food smelled pretty good.

"O-okay then..." He hefted the stack of papers onto his arms before taking the lead, "Let's go then..."

"Of course, Summoner."

"Please, it's just Kiran." He replied, Tana beside him stared into his eyes with surprise, the man only turned his head towards her with a kind smile. She giggled before nodding with a light blush adorning her cheeks as she happily hummed to herself as they walked further and further into the moonlit corridor.

A certain pair of Renais twins watched the scene with a hint of held back amusement on their faces, "What should we do brother?" Eirika asked. "Hmm, I think that it would be best that we leave them alone, it would be a good opportunity to have them spend time with one another without our assistance." Eirika nodded happily as they turned back towards the rowdy mess hall.

Have a good night Kiran, Tana.

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 **Well, that's chapter 2 completed of this story, I hope you've enjoyed it.**

 **Writing these are good for the heart and are a good stress reliever from essays due the week after.**

 **Thanks for reading.**

 **Ignis**


	3. I don't want to lose her

**World of '?'**

"Hmm..." Kiran hummed as he scanned the surrounding premise. They were told to investigate an overgrown forest that the researchers of Askr have located the coordinates to from... science?, Honestly, Kiran had no clue as to how they did such a thing without the use of computers and such from his era but he felt that he would just get a headache if they started to explain it to him so he just left the topic alone, in fact, nearly everyone did. The landscape appeared to be filled with a lush green forest, they had also located a ravine from their entrance to this realm as of the portal's location. A pen and parchment in his hands, Kiran began scribbling a mock-up view map of the area, he had always liked drawing as a hobby of his and he was glad to put it to practical use. Tana walked up beside him, curious as to what he was doing huddled over the edge of a cliff. The hooded man appeared to be absorbed in self-thought as he mulled over the possible scenarios that they might encounter with their current squadron which consisted of only Tana and Kiran himself. Kiran's reasoning being that the main objective of this mission was based on scouting an unknown area or even another realm, so it didn't likely require more units as there was also the possibility that non-flying units could get lost in the expansive rainforest that lay before them.

"What are you doing Kiran?" She asked innocently, jolting the man from his thoughts. "Ah, T-Tana! ... I was just, um, sketching out a map of the area." He replied as he pointed out towards the view in front of them while handing the parchment to the Frelian princess. The two had stationed on the tip of a mountain, seeing that it would likely be the best spot to perform some recon. Luckily for them, it had given a full rounded view of the land around them, it was a nice view to boot as well.

Kiran heard a gasp behind him. Thinking that it was an alert for an enemy, Kiran spun around immediately... only to find Tana with a wonderous expression on her face as she was enamored with his sketch. "Wow Kiran, I didn't know that you were so good at drawing, I could barely draw scribbles!"

Letting the comment set in, Kiran blushed heavily before tugging his hood to cover even more of his face. "I-it's n-not that g-good..." She laughed, "Nonsense, it's really good, I mean it! It's sketched in so much detail that it might as well be the real thing!" She exclaimed. From under the hood, Kiran smiled sheepishly before pulling out a small leather skinned book from his satchel. "T-thank you, you are too kind." She smiled before her expression turned into curiosity upon setting her sights upon the book.

"What's that?" Tana asked leaning over, pointing towards the object in Kiran's hand, "Umm, t-this is my... p-personal notebook..." She nodded in understanding before crouching next to him. Sitting shoulder to shoulder, the two watched as the blue sky washed over the lush green trees. A cool gust of wind knocked back Kiran's hood, exposing his chocolate brown hair. Turning in an attempt to retrieve his cowl, he found himself a front seat of one of the beautiful sights he had seen. Tana sat next to him lightly hugging her knees, her ponytailed midnight blue hair flowed freely in the wind, her sea blue eyes gazed wistfully across the trees, a small smile formed on her soft lips.

She was so beautiful...

Kiran shook that thought from his head. _No... I'm not allowed to think like that... Alfonse said that it would only be more painful once we part ways..._

 _I'm not allowed... to fall in love..._

The Frelian princess hummed a soft tune beside him, the melody reminded him of a nursery rhyme. "What song is that?" He asked. Tana turned to face him, a cute smile on her face. "My father, King Hayden taught it to me when I was little, it was my favorite lullaby." She ended with a slight blush, Kiran nodded, "I see, that sounds nice..."

The two sat in silence once more, "What about you? Is it customary for your parents to sing you lullabies in your world as well?" Tana asked. Kiran kept his gaze on the blue sky, his gaze seeming distant, "... I..." He frowned, before looking down at his feet with a forlorn look in his eyes. Tana felt a sense of guilt wash over her as she covered her mouth with her white-gloved hands, "Oh, I'm sorry Kiran, I didn't mean to-" He turned his head towards her, his eyes held a look of sadness yet a trace of gratitude could be found within his golden irises. "It's alright... thank you, Tana..."

The two settled down in silence again, simply gazing down on the world from the mountain they sat at.

Kiran stood before standing up and stretching, "Well, I suppose we should head back. The others are probably waiting..." He offered a hand to her, a brief expression of surprise washed her face before it was replaced with a grateful smile as she gracefully accepted it. The two stood before mounting onto Tana's white coated, golden-maned Pegasus, Achaeus, ensuring that they had collected all of their equipment and items before their departure.

Originally, Kiran had declined the offer to ride with her as he had manifested a fear of heights as a young child for reasons not known to many as well as claiming that his awkward nature would likely affect his concentration during the scouting mission. However, he had found that being in Tana's cheery and friendly presence had calmed his nervous tendencies as they flew as well as the touch of her soft sides had filled him with a feeling of warmth and a mysterious sense of calmness (of course, not in a perverted way, I'm better than that!) Kiran thought.

The two circled the surrounding area once more to verify the sketch Kiran made, "Hmm, looks good." Kiran confirmed as he tucked his sketch within the confines of his notebook. Tana nodded in affirmation, "Alright!" She cheered before continuing "You hear that Achaeus? It's time to go home now..." The majestic beast whinnied in response as the two continued the journey in a comfortable silence.

Upon reaching the border of the forest, a large deep rift could be seen, separating the forest from a more desolate area "So we have to go beyond that ravine, right Kiran?" Tana inquired. Of course, it was necessary information seeing as how she is responsible for delivering the two home and safe. Kiran nodded in affirmation, "Yes, I should be able to use the Breidablik to create another portal back to Askr..." A sudden sense of dread shivered down his spine as he turned around quickly. Being a legendary summoner from another realm had it's perks as his status somehow gave him the abilities to detect an enemy's presence, especially when other heroes are nearby. His eyes scanning the terrain until he saw a glint of steel approaching the duo.

"Kiran? What's the matte-"

"Tana an archer!" Kiran shouted as he brought out a light wind tome, creating a light green barrier of wind magic in time for the offending arrow to bounce harmlessly into the ravine below them. Tana brought her Pegasus to an abrupt halt. Regaining his composure from the change in momentum, Kiran turned around to see what had caused her to stop, only to be met with a mob of archers and axemen lining along the edge of the ravine.

Their exit was cut off.

Kiran peered at the offending soldiers, he cursed as he recognized their features.

Melted and stitched faces, glowing red eyes, expired and patched skin and to finish, a smoky purple aura enveloping their bodies. Kiran had spent a good amount of time studying the possible enemies the Order could encounter across the different realms, though one of the creatures that fascinated him most were the augmented puppets of mass destruction, made by the hand of the fell dragon himself, Grima.

Risen.

It had occured to him then, that they had stumbled upon an unmarked biome from the world of Awakening. Though there was plenty of time to go over this news, he had a responsibility to get him and Tana back home , safe and alive. It was something that he had promised to Eirika, Ephraim and himself...

He didn't want to see her die.

He would do anything to protect her.

The line of risen launched an onslaught of arrows and throwing axes approached the pair, Kiran created another barrier, unfortunately, it didn't cover the entirety of Achaeus. Tana did her best to avert the incoming barrage of projectiles, dodging and weaving through the continuous waves, though it appeared that Achaeus was getting tired fast. Even worse was that Kiran's wind tome had run out of pages.

"Damn it!" He cursed under his breath, Kiran turned his view back towards the Frelian princess, "Tana, we need to get to-" A sharp jolt erupted through Achaeus' spine as it let out a cry of pain. one of it's wings had been pierced by an arrow. "Achaeus!" Tana cried as the two started to descend.

Turning his body outright, he struggled to pull another tome from his satchel but found himself unable to make that choice as a metallic glint came towards them at a strikingly fast speed, though as far as he could tell, it wasn't aimed for him... it was Tana.

He gasped at the realization, turning his head to the side he found the blue-haired princess attempting to regain control of Achaeus, shouting her name, Kiran pushed forward held onto her tightly, the princess looking at him with a confused and desperate look until it was replaced with horror and despair. A sharp and thunderous pain erupted from his shoulder blade as an arrow dug deep into his skin, he cried out in pain as tears flowed freely from his golden eyes until the world turned black...

* * *

When Kiran awoke, he saw a dark tinted blue and a faint light illuminating his helpless body. He lay there, unmoving against the cold and damp surface, looking up at the bright sky above them. Familiar Red dots in the distance slowly faded away, one by one.

Where was he?

He remembered going on a scouting mission with Tana... and then they got ambushed.

Tana...

"Tana!" He shouted as he sat upright, Kiran hissed as he clutched his stinging shoulder blade... which had been bandaged?

As curiosity took hold of him, Kiran released his grip to see a thick fabric had been wrapped around his torso area to prevent him from bleeding further than he had already, the main area around the wound was blood-soaked but it appeared that the bleeding had stopped.

A quiet moan was heard nearby him, his gaze shifted around his area in a panicked fashion until he had come across Tana's passed out form who carried by Achaeus, who's wing wound had also appeared to be treated by a light red fabric. Kiran stood up sluggishly and tried to run over to the two but had stumbled and fallen in the process, followed by a sickening thud and intense pain.

She was alright.

The sound of trotting approached him as a shadow loomed over his pitiful state, followed by a whinnie and a snort. Kiran had felt his collar pulled up as he came face to face with Tana's Pegasus. Helping him onto his feet, Kiran smiled in thanks, not that he thought that Pegasi could read human emotives but amazingly, the white beast nodded back.

Looking around, Kiran had concluded that the three of them (including Achaeus) had fallen down the ravine, which had appeared to have a small but long river system flowing through it, though somehow they had made it out alive... barely... though maybe the river had something to do with it?

... maybe...

Deciding to scout the surrounding area, Kiran and Achaeus had stopped at a small cavern at the edge of the river that appeared to conveniently be able to house enough space for the three of them to set up camp temporarily. It was a good thing too as Kiran's instincts told him that a rainstorm would occur soon with the change in wind pressure and the water's intensity, Kiran shuddered at the thought of sleeping directly under the rain. He turned his gaze toward the sleeping princess, concern written on his face.

And she didn't deserve to suffer any more than she had already.

Setting up camp, though there wasn't really much available, Kiran divided some provisions that he had retrieved from his satchel for both him, Tana and Achaeus. The pegasus folded its legs neatly and rested sitting upright as it closed its eyes. On the white beast's back, Tana lay comfortably and snugly against Achaeus' back, though it had only come to his attention now that she was only wearing a white underdress shirt and her skirt which both appeared to be soaking wet. Looking at his bandaged shoulder and Achaeus' wing, he concluded that Tana had used her shirt as a makeshift gauze to bandage their wounds. Frowning and blushing at the same time, Kiran shrugged his coat gently off of his body before draping it over Tana as she wriggled into its warmth comfortably, making him chuckle silently.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

He smiled wearily before laying his hand over her's reassuringly, "We'll get out of here... I promise." He whispered. As he was about to let go, the now coatless summoner found his hand now confiscated by Tana, though she appeared to be still asleep.

"Don't go..." She whimpered softly. Kiran sighed, he was about to object but sleep and drowsiness was beginning to overtake him.

Conceding in defeat, he laid down beside her. Her hand wrapped warmly and softly around his.

At that moment, he felt a smile crept over his face as all of his worries wash away as sleep overtook him once more.

Though at least this time, they weren't in any immediate danger...

Though his fellow colleagues would probably be sick at the absence of their legendary summoner, he just wanted to sleep.

* * *

 **Hey guys! i hope that this chapter wasn't too strange for you, I kind of just thought it up on a whim though I suppose that's what this series is mostly about, the next chapter will probably be a continuation of this. I hope it wasn't bad, it's pretty late when I wrote this and I'm feeling kind of sick as well, so pardon me if it's written poorly, I'll try to improve it when my body gives it the rest it needs.**

 **Thanks for reading**

 **Ignis**


	4. What am I to do

**Author's notes:**

 **Hey guys, really sorry I haven't been updating lately, I've had a base outline for this chapter for quite a while now but I've been busy rewriting my other story.**

 **Without further ado, enjoy chapter 4**

* * *

 **World of Awakening - Night**

Kiran's eyes lifted slowly as he felt something warm weighing down his side but he didn't take any particular notice of it. Yawning, the legendary summoner merely laid there, staring at the glistening crystallized mineral spikes that hung above them. It was a good thing that they didn't fall on them as they slept he supposed, though it was a rather pretty sight.

There appeared to be a minor source of light from where he presumed the entrance of the cave to be but it was still faint.

Perhaps it was still night time?...

He concentrated on his surroundings, though it appeared that there weren't any unusual noises around them, the vibrations in the earth felt perfectly normal.

He sighed, it was probably time to start planning their next course of action, they couldn't stay down there forever...

Kiran attempted to sit up but had found himself unable to do so, something had appeared to be draped over the left side of his body and it was unusually warm. In confusion and slight curiosity, he turned to his left.

And immediately found himself frozen upon doing so.

He had found a familiar blue-haired Frelian Princess snuggling up to his side, somehow being transferred over from Achaeus' back to him. He had found Tana's slender arms wrapped around his torso, her head was laid on his still chest with a smile on her face as she snored lightly. His coat had been worn loosely around her, it was probably a bit big for her... but he had to admit that it was cute...

On an unconscious reflex, Kiran stroked her head lightly, the action felt strangely familiar to him... It felt nice...

Tana hummed a sound of approval before sinking deeper into his chest, upon doing so, Kiran blushed but continued anyway.

The two stayed like that for a while, Kiran's mind wandered off into a void of white.

Two Faceless people appeared in his dream. A male and female both carried smiles on their faces as they reached out towards him. He didn't know what was going on as he looked down to find his body had shrunk, presumably a child's body. Unconsciously, Kiran ran forward before leaping into the two figure's open arms as they embraced, ruffling his mop of brown hair.

Something wet had dropped onto his cheeks, waking him from his brief dream. Upon bending his arm to touch it, he found a droplet of clear liquid on the tip of his finger. "..."

He felt Tana shift from above him as her eyes fluttered open sleepily. The warmth he had felt disappeared as she sat up from him before stretching her arms above her head while pushing out her chest, which in turn caused Kiran to look away in embarrassment. Upon finishing the stretch, her shoulders slumped forward as she smacked her lips sluggishly while rubbing her eyes until her sights were set upon the currently flustered summoner, "... Kiran?..." She asked, still half asleep as well as curiosity taking hold of her as she questions why he was on the floor directly beneath her. He could only giver her a shaky smile, "H-hey..."

She tilted her head to the side in confusion before her eyes widened slowly.

 _If I had just woken up... and there was something warm underneath me..._

Her cheeks flushed a deep crimson as she looked down to find Kiran's large robe wrapped snugly around her slim arms, "O-oh G-gods, I'm s-so sorry K-Kiran!" She stammered, Kiran himself had a hard time to calm himself down as he had just realized the implications of what he had done. "Uhm, u-uh, I... uh." The two sat in an uncomfortable silence, huddling themselves with a foot's worth of space between them. "You... didn't do anything while I was asleep... right?" Tana asked hesitantly, Kiran turned to face her, his expression aghast "Gods, no! no no no no no no no no no no no..." She smiled sheepishly before rubbing the back of her head, "Sorry, I just wanted to make sure... I trust you wouldn't do anything to me. You are Eirika's and Ephraim's... as well as my friend after all." She added with a blush. Kiran huddled himself into a denser ball, Tana had assumed that he was attempting to hide his embarrassment from her but upon closer inspection, she could see that he was lightly shivering.

"You should take this back, it's yours after all..." She began to shrug off his coat but he placed a firm hand on her own, accompanied by a shake of his head. "N-no, it's okay... you probably need it more than I do..." She looked at him for a moment, concern written all over her face until an idea sparked.

Huddling over, Tana took off the giant cloak before draping it across both of their backs. "This should keep us both warm, hehe." He awkwardly smiled as a deeper blush crept across his face. Tana crept in closer until their shoulders rubbed against each other, Kiran froze at the contact but slowly eased into her presence. That was until the Frelian princess rested her head on top of his shoulder, making him as stiff as a statue, although it appeared that Tana didn't mind his reaction or more rather she had expected it.

"T-tana... um, w-what are you doing?" She picked her head up from his shoulder to look him in the eyes. "I'm still kind of sleepy, so I think that a short nap is in order." She murmured, a faint blush still on her olive tanned complexion.

"..."

"A-alright..."

"Thank you."

The two stared off into the outside of the cavern as the light painted a cerulean blue view of the river outside.

"So, what are we to do now?" Tana asked. Kiran placed a finger to his chin in thought.

"Hmm, I think it'd be best that we stay within the confines of this cave until help arrives. I found that the Breidablik was unfortunately damaged..." He tilted his head towards the roof of the cavern in thought before shaking his head dismissively. "No, that's not right... it's more, um..." He reached out to pull his satchel to reveal the dull colored legendary weapon, taking on an appearance similar to stone. "I believe it's in a powered down state instead of being ' _broken_ ' so I can't exactly say when it will recharge... though apparently, the scientists of Askr have been studying the effects of their own teleportation device which has already achieved success on some few test runs and have been synchronised to match wavelengths of the Briedablik, so they will be able to locate our last coordinates and track us down." He turned his head towards the princess who frowned in confusion, he supposed that it was quite a difficult phenomenon to explain and he'd probably end up boring her if he did.

"Um..." He blushed in embarrassment before scratching the back of his head sheepishly, "Uhm, w-well to put it simply... We will just have to wait here until help arrives and we don't have any other options unless the Briedablik recharges before then, or Achaeus heals quickly enough so we have the option to relocate to another location if the situation calls for it, we don't know if there are still risen out there." She nodded in understanding although it appeared that she was still missing a few dots, though he couldn't blame her, it was a mouthful to say all that.

Kiran simply smiled before placing the Breidablik back into his satchel before pulling out an apple and handing it to his companion beside him.

"Want one?" She smiled before taking it gratefully after giving her thanks, Kiran pulled one out for himself as well as one for Achaeus who had magically appeared at the smell of nearby apples, the three began to eat.

"... *munch*"

"..."

"Hey, Kiran?"

"Yes, Tana?" She turned her head to face his with a curious expression.

"That notebook you used earlier... what exactly do you do with it?" He paused momentarily before hesitantly drawing out his fine leathered book from one of the inner pockets of his coat.

"Um, well, I've used this for lots of things... but it's mostly just random logs and profiles on our heroes." She perked up slightly, curious to see what kind of information he had written on the heroes of the order, who knows... maybe she'd be in there too. The thought of it made her chest feel warm.

"Um, would it be too much trouble if I could take a look?" She asked eagerly. While Kiran was a timid guy most of the time, he couldn't refuse her cheerful and earnest personality.

"H-here..." He stammered as he held his book out to Tana. She accepted it enthusiastically before combing through the pages.

"Oh, is that Ephraim?" She asked, pointing to a familiar sketch of a teal haired Renais Prince. Kiran nodded his head slowly, "Yeah, it is..." She laughed, "Wow, you make him look so dashing, he looks so handsome!" He chuckled awkwardly as he turned his head away in embarrassment, he had known that Tana had a childhood crush on his friend Ephraim. He had known that in some timelines, Tana marries Ephraim and becomes the queen of Renais. He had known that many of the texts of their courtship told of a tale of happiness and love.

What did it matter if he was called the legendary summoner, he was still just him... pathetic old him.

He had no right to interfere with what was meant to be.

He didn't deserve to be part of that love...

"Heh, well he is a pretty strong guy, after all, he can pretty much handle everything." She giggled in agreement before flicking over to the next page where an even brighter smile flashed on her face. "Oh, it's Eirika! She looks so beautiful and graceful!" She stared at her image in wonder, she was amazed at how good Kiran was at translating real life into paper drawings which only made her more curious.

Flicking over more pages, she finally stopped at the page she wanted to see so badly.

 _Entry - Tana, The winged princess_

She smiled at the small nickname Kiran had given to her, it had a nice ring to it.

Then came her image.

It was her...

The figure held a flower in one hand as she watched it keenly with a lasting and beautiful smile on her face, her favored lance held in the other as it stuck out of the ground. The woman had a confident posture, her bright sapphire-blue eyes, her long flowing hair tie into a ponytail, the person she saw staring back at her looked a lot like her... but was it?

She saw an upbeat and confident young woman who had an aura of courage and confidence, a beautifully sketched white pegasus beside her slender and energetic form.

Was this how he saw her?

Her eyes followed to the profile written under her entry log which consisted had mostly of notable strengths and weaknesses as well as general traits and personality types, however, there was one passage had stood out to her the most.

 _Tana is an extremely capable fighter and is proficient with the lance. She is an extremely kind and caring person with a cheery and upbeat attitude that always puts a smile on the people around her and she never fails to meet my expectations in terms of learning ability as well as her achievements. She holds a lot of potential as an aerial unit and is a valued highly by her peers and fellow colleagues, her combat abilities likely being able to match that of even Ephraim and Eirika. In all honesty, I'm envious of her, she's kind and strong, confident and forgiving._

 _But that only makes me more grateful one of my most trusted comrade and friend is as kind and beautiful as her._

 _We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful woman in the order of heroes._

 _\- Kiran_

She fought to hold back tears from flowing down her cheeks. Tana had always received criticism from her early peers and especially her father for her choice of joining the fray of battle as they had only believed that she would only prove to be a burden to the soldiers on the battlefield as she held the title of Frelia's princess. They had also assumed the fact that the sheltered princess just wanted to explore the world outside the castle without the need of bodyguards while staying ignorant of all the dangers lurking in the shadows. But of course she knew of the dangers, she knew how wrong the world could be at times albeit not at it's fullest extent, they simply could not comprehend the fact that she simply wanted to be helpful to all those that just brushed her off to the side. Words couldn't describe how grateful she was for his kind words of support and encouragement, to say that she is needed and is wanted.

To be called beautiful... the thought left a warm feeling in her chest.

As Kiran predicted, rain started pouring from the outside of the cavern, the light hum of droplets filled the blue tinted cavern with a calming atmosphere. Unfortunately, the rain's presence cooled the temperature of the inhabitants of the cave even lower than it had previously. Beside him, Kiran felt Tana shiver a bit, though she didn't complain about the cold. Debating his choices for a moment he hesitantly draped his arm over Tana's body pulling her closer to him, eliciting a squeak from the now blushing princess of Frelia.

"K-Kiran?!"

"S-sorry, you looked cold..."

"..."

She leaned further into his embrace, placing her gloved hand on top of his chest. He fought the urge to indulge in this experience, he was merely helping her stave off the cold, that was all... Nothing else...

 _It's warm..._

She giggled softly, "I feel I should be apologizing." He tilted his head curiously, "W-what for?" She smiled sadly as her distant gaze swept across the rainfall.

"I'm afraid I haven't been much help to you, I'm still in training and I'm not quite battle-ready." She had already known what Kiran had thought of her as of what he had written in his notebook but she just wanted to hear it himself. Kiran frowned, it surprised him that the normally cheery girl would make a remark so self-depreciating. She sighed dejectedly, "I'm just a princess who knew nothing about the world outside, I was kept safe within the confines of my father's castle and was ignorant of the struggle that my people faced... I'm no use to anyone... I-"

"Tana, you aren't useless." The statement lingered in the air as Tana looked at Kiran with an expression of shock on her olive-tanned complexion, a small smile formed on his face.

"You're a valued member of the order, Tana. You may have been considered inexperienced when you first joined us, but you worked hard to get to where you are today." He spread his arms out wide to emphasize his next point. "And now, you're out there fighting with the best of them." He rested his arms back in their usual positions before continuing. "Please don't think that you haven't been helpful, you've been a great boon to the Order and we couldn't have been gladder that you're fighting on our side." He smiled sweetly before averting his gaze to the rainfall in front of them.

"You've also helped me through many hardships, and I couldn't be more grateful to be able to call you a friend."

A soft tear ran down her cheek as she simply leaned further into Kiran's embrace to hide her flushed face.

"Thank you. Truly, thank you, for making an effort to understand how I feel..." She looked up to meet his golden eyes as they watched her with a warm softness. "Back in my world, the people in the army would always smile at me and refer to me by my title, but... I could always tell that they felt that I was a burden on the force, I was someone who didn't belong on the battlefield because I wasn't like Eirika. I could feel their unwanting gazes when I had my back turned... but!" She looked up to meet his gaze, "When I was summoned here, I was accepted into this world as a someone who was needed, I was deemed a _hero_ even if I didn't think I was worthy of being called one in the first place."

She clutched onto his cloak as her body trembled, "I was so happy, I was wanted, I got to share laughs with people who like me being around... and most of all, I... I got to meet you." His eyes widened as his blush deepened, "T-tana?" But she wasn't done yet.

"Since you had summoned me to this world, you only showed me kindness and compassion since we've first met, you were always there for me when I made a mistake and took it upon yourself to help me up, you were the reason that I was able to meet and befriend such kind and wonderful people and to reunite with my dear friends as well. I can't thank you enough Kiran, from the bottom of my heart, I'm truly indebted to you."

To say that Kiran was speechless was an understatement. He turned his gaze away guiltily as he didn't feel so deserving of such praise. Kiran felt as his face burned up, this wasn't right... he wasn't allowed to give in to what his heart told him, no matter how much it wanted to spill out... he couldn't. "Tana... I... You don't owe me anything, I'm the one who owes you everything... You've done so much for me and the order, I'm just a simple man who has nothing in this world but a piece of rock and a simple title... " The Frelian princess cupped his face with both of her hands as her thumbs brushed softly over his lips, she shook her head, her sapphire blue eyes grew teary as she smiled shakily at him.

"That's not true, Kiran. You've done so much for everyone in the order and you spend many nights working tirelessly to protect us from failure, don't try to act as if you haven't done anything for us when you had sacrificed everything."

"I..." Kiran felt a lump form in his throat as his eyes began to well up, he desperately tried to fight his urge to just hold her close to him, he wanted to be with her so badly... _but it would only hurt her once they parted_ _._ Unwillingly, he leaned forward as his worries washed away as his consciousness began to get foggy, Tana leaned in closer as well until the two's noses touched. Their ragged breaths could be felt on the other's skin as the sensation of their touch sent shivers down their spines. Tana's soft lips opened as she began to speak the words that would change her life forever.

"Kiran... I-... I 've always felt close to you since you had taken me into the order, you had taken me under your wing and you had personally trained and helped me grow. You mean so much to me... Eirika and Ephraim are my best friends but you have become just as important to me, if not more so." Her warm breath caressed Kiran's cheek as he could only sit and watch her grow closer.

"Tana..."

"Kiran... I"

"I love y-"

* _BOOM*_ A loud crash of thunder cracked the atmosphere as the two jolted back in fear, they clung to each other desperately as lightning crackled above them as the booming thunder resounded throughout the cavern even jolting Achaeus awake as they whinnied.

But what caught their attention was the distant sound of voices that echoed throughout the ravine despite the pouring rain. The two-edged closer to the edge, careful not to get wet in the process. They could hear them... their voices appeared to be distraught or worried but their speech was muffled by the beating rain. Though this sparked a glimmer of hope for the two as their eyes lighted up brightly, wide-smiled blossomed on their faces. "Could it be?" Tana asked, astonished.

"They're here." Kiran ended, as the beating of pegasus wings reached their ears.

Turning back to the Frelian princess, Kiran frowned. He knew that it would require at least one of them to scout or alert the people outside but it wasn't guaranteed that they were _their_ reinforcements. Contemplating his decisions for a moment, Kiran took off his portion of the cloak before buttoning up all of its buttons to securely wrap over Tana, much to her protest.

"Tana, I need you to stay in here. I'll go outside to alert the rescue squadron, okay?" Her brows furrowed at his order, "But Kiran, you can't go out like that in the rain! You'll catch a cold." He smiled warmly, grateful for her concern "Thank you, Tana, but you need it more than I do. I can handle at least a little bit of rain." He joked before reaching out and holding her hand which was cold to the touch, Tana shivered violently from the sudden loss of heat. Her gaze turned to the ground sorrowfully, Kiran sighed before leaning over to wrap the princess in a comforting and warm hug, to which she gladly returned. "I promise to get you out of here, please, just wait until I come back, okay?" He pleaded, she sighed but nodded reluctantly. As they parted from each other, Kiran placed a hand on her cold cheek, smiling brightly. "I'll see you on the other side."

Standing up, he helped her onto Acheus' back, mounting her securely onto its saddle. Tana hugged Kiran's cloak, keeping it close to her chest in an attempt to preserve the warmth that it had provided the both of them beforehand. Tana's vision was slowly enveloped by a black abyss, while she didn't have the energy to be surprised at how tired she really was, all she could focus on was the last thing she saw, Kiran's warm smile.

She was out like a light.

Kiran sighed in relief as soon as he secured Tana at the back of the cave with her trusted pegasus. Turning to the light of the cavern's entrance, Kiran sneaked outside quietly, being careful not to alert Tana or the unidentified voices until they could be discerned. As he crept closer, the shouts became clearer.

"K-an, T-a!" The voice sounded oddly familiar, it sounded feminine... Kiran inched closer.

"Kir-n, Ta-a, We'r- he-e!" This one sounded more masculine, the voices seemed clearer as two teal headed silhouettes appeared in the pouring rain, glass-paned lanterns at their side.

"Kiran, Tana! Where are you?!" It was Ephraim and Eirika!

Kiran felt a sudden rush of relief flood his senses as he rushed out of the cavern. His boots splashed in the icy puddles and his tactician's attire became soaked but he didn't care. Thinking up a way to gain their attention without waking Tana, Kiran's expression lit up as he brought out a simple thunder tome. As he chanted the incantation, a bright light emerged from his hand, the reflective pellets of rain brightened as the area around them brightened immensely, the twins appeared to notice him as they started closing in on his position.

"Eirika, Ephraim!" Kiran greeted happily as he ran up to them, the twins also had smiles on their faces as they had reunited with their dear friend. The two landed their pegasi as they jumped off of their mounts to meet him, as the three jumped into a group hug.

"Kiran, I'm so glad you're safe!" Eirika exclaimed, tears forming on the edge of her eyes. The Renais princess sobbed into his already soaking wet shirt as the prince patted him heartily on the back.

"It's good to see you safe, but where is Tana, Kiran?" Ephraim inquired. Remembering that the Frelian princess was still inside the cavern, Kiran nodded before ushering the two and their mounts into the small cavern which luckily was able to accommodate all of them. The twins expressions brightened upon finding the blue haired princess sound asleep on Achaeus' back, Kiran's cloak wrapped snugly around her as she had a smile on her face.

"Please be quiet, Tana is sleeping right now." Kiran whispered as they nodded in understanding. The three sat down and caught up to wait out the storm as all of their items were soaked to no end.

"So the portal actually worked?" Kiran inquired as he bit into some provisions brought by the twins. Eirika nodded, "Mhm, they said that they could track your Breidablik's energy source through the device so we knew your general location." Ephraim nodded, "While we don't know the exact specifics, not that we really want to, they were able to at least make a working portal for us to enter, thank Naga that it worked as well as it did." Eirika shuddered, as her expression soured slightly, "Ugh, but going through it was much less pleasant than when you use your portals." Kiran laughed before patting Eirika's shoulders which caused the teal haired princess to smile.

The three continued to chat into the night but Kiran appeared to be a lot quieter than how he usually was which concerned Ephraim and Eirika.

"Kiran, is everything alright?" Ephraim asked, concerned for his friend. Eirika's expression conveyed a similar message as the two watched him anxiously. He smiled shakily as he averted his gaze to the ground.

"Yeah, I'm fine... I just need some time to think..."

He turned his gaze to the unconscious Frelian princess, his heart squeezed disconcertedly as he was facing an internal crisis.

 _I was too weak to keep my desires in check... I was so close to doing something unforgivable._

He laid his hand on his forehead as he sighed. His golden eyes distant as he tuned out the world around him.

 _But... can I still contain what my heart desires..._

 _What am I to do..._

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 **Author's Notes:**

 **Yeeeeeah, we're not there yet... sorry...**

 **But yeah, I plan on doing some more stuff to develop this relationship more as I think it's more fitting but unfortunately I'm not exactly sure when I'll get the next chapter out (It won't be more than a month I promise.) and also, we'll probably be back at the castle next chapter so yeah.**

 **See you then.**

 **Ignis**


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